Monday, January 27, 2014

More golds in store for diving at Glasgow 2014

Ng
Yan Yee and Cheong Jun Hong en route to winning the synchro 3m
springboard during the SEA Games this month. There will be a total of 10
golds at stake in next year's Glasgow Commonwealth Games. - Filepic

PETALING JAYA: There is good news for the national diving team. A total
of 10 golds will be on offer at next year’s Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

Earlier when Glasgow made its presentation to host the Games, it only
offered to stage four events. But now it has included all the synchro
disciplines – springboard and platform – as well as the individual
events.

National diving head coach Yang Zhuliang is now optimistic of his
charges returning with a better medal haul from the Games, which will be
held from July 23-Aug 3.

The Malaysian divers bagged a gold, a silver and two bronzes for their
best-ever outing in the Games history. Pandelela Rinong was the star of
the team, winning the nation’s first-ever diving gold in the women’s 10m
platform individual.

Pandelela also partnered Leong Mun Yee to win the silver in the 10m
platform synchro while Bryan Nickson Lomas contributed two bronzes
through the 10m platform and 3m springboard synchro with Yeoh Ken Nee.

But with a better depth in the team at his disposal now, Zhuliang
believes Malaysia, who made a clean sweep of all the eight golds at the
recent Myanmar SEA Games, are capable of breaking the dominance of the
big three – Canada, Australia and England.

Zhuliang was pleased with the progress of several young divers,
particularly debutants Nur Dhabitah Sabri and Muhd Nazreen Abdullah who
were victorious at the Myanmar Games.

“With the emergence of good back-up divers, we now have more options in
certain events. What is unique about the Commonwealth Games is that a
nation can field a maximum of three divers for individual events. As for
synchro events, a nation can field two pairs.

“We used to rely on the same divers in the last two editions, but it will no longer be the same for Glasgow.

“We can have two pairs in synchro events. For instance in the 10m
platform synchro, we can enter Pandelela-Mun Yee as well as Traisy
Vivien (Tukiet) with Dhabitah or (Loh) Zhiayi.

“The chances of winning more medals are certainly higher,” said Zhuliang.

A number of tournaments have been lined up for both the senior and back-up divers to fine-tune their dives before the Games.

Pandelela, Mun Yee, Cheong Jun Hoong, Wendy Ng Yan Yee, Ooi Tze Liang
and Ahmad Amsyar Azman will all be competing in all the legs of the
Diving World Series. The second stringers and juniors will also not be
short of competitions.

Chew Yi Wei, Nazreen and Muhd Danial Sabri as well as Traisy, Dhabitah,
Zhiayi, Kam Ling Kar, Jasmine Lai, Adeline Chin and Ng Zheng Ni will be
sent to compete in Grand Prix tournaments as Amateur Swimming Union 0f
Malaysia (ASUM) are planning to send them to compete in a few legs of
the eight-leg series.

Malaysia are also hosting for the first time a Grand Prix meet in September.